I Need A Kristintervention

In more ways than one. For reals.

Today is my sweet sister's birthday. And while Kristin is basking in the sun in the faraway land known as Florida, I am sadly stuck in Michigan. (Although, no complaints about the weather, because I have been doing quite a bit of basking myself. Thank you, Mother Nature!)

We won't be drinking margaritas together to celebrate, but that doesn't mean she hasn't been on my mind all day, because I sure do miss her.

Do you know who else misses her?

My house.

Remember that time she came over and basically kicked my ass and ordered me around and forced me to get organized? Weeellll...let's just say I haven't exactly been living up to her expectations. I'm pretty sure every surface in my house has suffered my abuse, and it ain't pretty.

I don't think I can convince her to leave the beach to, ya know, beat me into organizing my life. Which means I must take matters into my own hands.

I've been pondering a few things I've seen on Pinterest, like a daily cleaning schedule or one of those "52 Weeks to an Organized Life" deals. I don't know. I'm feeling overwhelmed. And embarrassed.

On a scale from one to ten, how pitiful is it if a stay-at-home mom wants to hire a cleaning service? (Although, as I said to my friend Katie today, my house is too much of a wreck to probably even get a cleaning service to come!)

You gotta start somewhere, right? So Kristin, in honor of that magical day you entered the world, I'm going to clean at least one room of my house today. If that doesn't shout "I'm so happy you were born!", then I'm not sure what does...

Happy Birthday, sister! I hope your day is surface-abuse free and full of wonderful things that make you happy. I love you!

Anyone have any tips or pointers for me? Experience with those daily cleaning schedules? HELP ME!

Huge Elmo, Pie, and a Baby Shower

Well. Would you look at that? The month of February is basically over, and it turns out I've been kind of a slacker in the blogging department.

Truth is, it hasn't been too exciting of a month. But in a good way, I suppose. We did take Anna to see Sesame Street Live ("Elmo is huge! On the stage!") and we did have some fun celebrating Valentine's Day (with delicious pie, how else?). Of course I didn't really document either of those things, but lucky for me my good friend Alexia did, so if you're so inclined you can check it out here and here. (She's eight months pregnant, so I'm not really sure what my excuse is, but I'm thankful she's a lot more on the ball than I am!)

Mike and I also escaped for a little weekend adventure (baby free!) up to Traverse City. Kristin and Drew were up there for the Special Olympics, and we had lots of fun exploring and hiking and taking in all the festivities. It was quick, but so nice to get away without Anna for a couple of days.

Probably the biggest excitement in February was a baby shower we threw for my oldest friend Caitlin. (When I say oldest, I mean that we have been friends since we were in our mama's bellies - not that she is old!) And seeing that her sweet baby girl arrived on Saturday, I suppose I could share some pictures from the party.

I'd never really been involved in throwing a baby shower before, but I have to admit it was a ton of fun. Of course Pinterest played a huge part in many of the ideas we used (did you expect anything else?), but the whole day was such a lovely celebration of Caitlin and Doug and the new life they are bringing into the world.

For the life of me, I could not blur out the address using Photoshop. Paint for the win!
Invitations from Etsy.

We played a fun game with everyone's baby photos

Favors - here is the original link for the DIY instructions

We all signed a copy of Caitlin's favorite book when she was a baby

The decorations were simple, but oh-so-fitting

What's a party without a little champagne?

Delicious cookies from Caitlin's aunt and uncle's bakery - Johnny B's Cookies

The parents-to-be

Womb Sisters!

One of the ladies made these sweet buttons for everyone to wear - little Caitlin and Leslie were so cute!

Now all that's left is a trip to Chicago so I can squeeze baby Madeline in person!


I hope everyone has had a wonderful, er, month. Here's to March - I'm ready for some sunshine!

What has filled your February?

Pinny Party!

Ok. Ok. I promise that I will stop talking about Pinterest. Soon.

Just not today.

It seems as though my beloved site is going mainstream. And I've heard some grumbling. Like people who are all mad that now everyone else has discovered this little gem and think it's getting tarnished or something. To me, the more the merrier. Because now there are even more people sharing even more awesome ideas and recipes for me to try. So, all you new Pinterest users? We're cool.

A few weeks ago (well, actually it was probably more like a month ago, but I am slow) something amazing happened. See, my friend Trista had this great idea that we should start organized little parties where we make something we find on Pinterest. When she told me, I was like, "Um, excuse me while my head explodes." Because, first of all, you know that I love making crafts, especially ones I find on Pinterest. And secondly, I loved the idea of getting my craft on with a bunch of other fun girls.

And the best part? We are going to call them "Pinny Parties".

As a stay-at-home-mom, (as it has probably become pretty obvious to you) life isn't always mega-exciting, and I sometimes find myself craving interaction with other adults. I mean, I love staying home with Anna, but there are days when episodes of Sesame Street and trips to the park and conversations with a two-year-old just ain't cuttin' it. Of course I have Mike, and while he is amazing and patient and excellent at listening to me ramble on about every minute detail of our day and keeping me sane, the one thing he is not? A girl. And there's just something about a group of girls getting together and laughing and eating that can't be replaced with anything else.

So, the date was the set and the project was selected and the supplies were purchased. And craft and laugh and eat we did.

Hard at work!

Marshmallow fluff & cream cheese fruit dip - also known to me as "crack"

How cute did these turn out?

Jenny was giving me serious vacation envy.

Part of my collection.

Here is the link to the original site where we found the idea - she goes into much more detail on how to make them, so check it out! We wanted to pick something fairly easy and cheap for our first try, and I think we did a great job.

Basically, we bought tiles from Home Depot (I think they were around 31 cents each). Some girls used actual photos, some used photos printed on plain computer paper. Both turned out, although I would say the ones that were on regular paper did a bit more "bleeding". Modge Podge the back of the photo, press down on the tile, and let it dry for a bit. Then Modge Podge over everything to seal it all in. I didn't get any pictures, but some used scrapbooking paper to accent or add borders and words.

I decided to hang mine on the wall using some of those little Command picture-hanging strips. They can also be used as coasters, although I think it would probably be best to use some kind of sealant so that water drips won't ruin them.

So there you have it. Our very first Pinny Party was a success - and I can't wait for the next one!

Have you made anything awesome you found on Pinterest? 

I'll Have What She's Having

I don't think I've really kept it much of a secret that I am slightly obsessed with Pinterest.

I suppose being crafty is a little in my blood. I mean, my mom has a degree in textile design, and so many of my memories growing up are of her creating something, whether it was cross stitching or basket weaving or amazing Halloween costumes. In fact, to this day, the hum of a sewing machine is a comforting sound, one that I love to hear.

But it wasn't until I was introduced to Pinterest that I really began to think, "Hey, I can probably do that!" My eyes were opened to all these new, fun, crafty ideas that I was dying to try.

After the first couple of days browsing through other pinners' boards, one idea kept calling to me. All of these people were making totally awesome play kitchens out of old entertainment centers. And I wanted to join in on the fun. So I convinced Mike that Anna needed one, and that we were going to make it for her, and began scouring Craig's List for the perfect piece of furniture that we could transform into a fun little place for Anna to make tea and scrambled eggs for her stuffed animals.

We found one that would work, and transform we did.

I have to admit that it wasn't quite as simple as I had imagined. And the idea about it being so much cheaper than buying one? Yeah, not so much. But I love that it's unique, and I love that Mike and I made it. Every night after Anna would go to bed, we'd spend an hour or two working on it, drinking beer and talking about how much our girl was going to love her new kitchen.

I should have been better about documenting the whole process. If you have specific questions, email me - I'm by no means an expert, but for our lack of knowledge and craftsmanship, I think it turned out pretty darn good!

Here's the basics:

First, we primed the whole thing, then painted. I told the guy at the hardware store what I was doing, and he recommended the type of paint we used, which was a latex base. I have to say that the paint is one of the things I like the least. The color is awesome, but the paint peels off pretty easily. We did seal it using a clear spray paint sealer, but I'm not sure how it will stand up over time. We shall see.

For the fridge door, I first coated it with several coats of magnetic spray paint. It's not as magnetic as I hoped - the spray cans kept clogging. I actually called Krylon and they ended up sending me a refund, which makes me think it must be a common problem. Regular magnets don't work, which is kind of a bummer, but I did find some super powerful ones that will stick. I plan to make some letters or something cute for her to have, but for now we just have a couple of small circles. I then sprayed it with silver metallic paint, the same color I used to spray all the hardware and the burners, which are just wooden circles we picked up at Hobby Lobby. I painted the coils on by hand and glued them on with wood glue.

The sink is a faucet we bought at Walmart, although we probably could have found one cheaper at a salvage yard or thrift store. Editor's Note: I normally HATE shopping at Walmart. HATE. But they had some crazy Black Friday deal on XBoxes that Mike wanted, so we were there shopping without a toddler and had a gift card. Hence, several Walmart purchases. I think we payed around ten bucks. The sink is a dog food bowl from Menard's, but again, we probably could have found something cheaper. Mike was in charge of cutting the hole for the bowl to fit in, and it was probably one of the more annoying tasks. It would be easier if you had some kind of jigsaw, but he did it all by hand. The stove and oven knobs are from a local store that sells refurbished appliances. They were two dollars each - not a great deal, but much cheaper than buying them new at Home Depot or Lowe's. We drilled holes, threaded screws up that fit into the knobs, and then put a little super glue on the ends to help them stay attached.

For the oven door, we busted out the middle piece, and then attached a $3 piece of plexi-glass on the back We bought new hinges and attached them at the bottom, and added a handle we got at Walmart (they came in a two-pack and we used the other one on the fridge).

I made the curtain from fabric I already had, and I think I want to make another curtain to cover the area under the sink. The window frame is from Michael's and we blew up a picture to put inside. The kitchen sign, chalkboard, and 'A' all came from hobby lobby, and I used Modge Podge to cover the 'A' in fabric.

I think that pretty much covers it. Anna scored all kinds of fabulous play food and kitchen accessories for Christmas and her birthday, and she also got a sweet little table to better serve her delicious creations.

Thanks again, Pinterest, for inspiring us to get our craft on!

And if you're in the neighborhood, stop on by. Anna makes a mean wooden pizza that you don't want to miss!

She Puts The Color Inside Of My World

As soon as we found out Anna's due date (December 24th), I knew our future kid was going to be faced with a lot of birthday disappointments over the years. I mean, seriously, a birthday at the end of December? My birthday is at the end of October and I sometimes feel slightly shorted. Like, all my presents come in a two-month stretch and right around June or July I start feeling envious of everyone celebrating their birthdays. (Because that's what Christmas and birthdays are all about, right? Presents!)

In fact, I even came across a blog that declares March to be "National Abstinence Month" so that no one is forced to celebrate a December birthday. While I wouldn't go as far as Scary Mommy does and say that "December babies suck," I would agree that a birthday three days after Christmas isn't exactly ideal.

But you know what? It is what it is. And like I mentioned a few days ago, even if I'm exhausted and totally over celebrating and stuffing my face, I'm going to make damn sure that Anna's birthday is celebrated. Yes, we've all eaten way too much cake. Yes, she's totally spoiled by the seemingly endless amount of presents that she's opened. Yes, I would very much like to take a long nap instead of cleaning my house. If Anna's birthday was in  probably any other month, though, none of those things would be an issue. My sister said, and I agree with her, that it's almost like we have to make a bigger deal out of her birthday than we normally would, just so she knows she has her own special day.

Besides, how are we not going to celebrate the day this girl came into our world?

This year was a much smaller affair than last year's, although I did get talked out of my original idea of ordering Costco pizzas. (Boo to that - who doesn't love Costco pizza? Who?) And I of course went a little overboard on the cake, but mostly because I get a kick out of doing stuff like that. Also - Pinterest exists this year, and there were quite a few fun ideas I wanted to try out.

Behold, the rainbow.

Much less complicated than it looks. Promise. Mostly time consuming. You need to buy the gel food coloring to get the colors that bright - they sell them at Michael's. I just used two boxes of white cake mix and divided the batter into eight smaller bowls. I only have two cake pans, so it took awhile to bake the layers, let them cool, wash the pans, and start over again.This bad boy required two batches of frosting, which equaled an extremely heart healthy six sticks of butter and eight cups of powdered sugar. Yum. If I did it again, I would use the same frosting for in between the layers, but probably use something a little fluffier for the outside. I still have like half of this cake in the freezer, so hit me up if you want a slice!



We ate Mexican food, Anna showed off her new presents, and we all marveled over the amazing little person she has become.

I spent like $25 on rainbow sprinkles. Yes, I'm aware I have a problem.

Birthday crown made by my mom.

When it comes down to it, even though her birthday may not be perfectly timed, in my eyes she timed her arrival perfectly. She's here. She's healthy. That's all that really matters.

And if that's not an excuse to eat rainbow cake, I'm not sure what is.

Any December babies out there? How do you cope? Will Anna be scarred for life?